Once the Rapids Calm
by PunkyIggy
Summary: Daniel saves Nick from the collapsing dam. The two believe everyone they knew is dead, but is that really the case? Their world is about to get a lot bigger. [Spoilers for 3x16 and 3x14]
1. Chapter 1

Nick felt the shift before the first crack. The security of the concrete building was compromised the moment he'd made the choice. The proctor's men around him knew it too, it was evident on their faces. Whether he thought this of the actions of himself standing on the dam, or the actions of his mother earlier that day within the dam, he didn't know.

 _It's over.  
_

A man grabbed Proctor John's arm, tearing him away and breaking his stare with the back of Nick's head.

 _It's over.  
_

Nick closed his eyes and gripped the chain fence securely. He'd seen the Zodiac struggle in the water below because of him. His family, attempting to escape because of him. Condemned to drown because of him.

"Nicholas!"

Nick doesn't react as someone pulls on his arm, turning him until he see's the torn face of Daniel Salazar. Daniel didn't wait for a response before dragging the shell shocked boy across the dam. Nick let the war veteran lead him quickly down the dam stairwell. The explosion had busted a hole in the center of the dam, not collapsed the whole thing as Troy had said.

 _Troy_

Daniel threw open the doors of a truck and pushed Nick in, following quickly and climbing into the driver's seat. Nick looked at the blood staining his arm for the first time.

"Salazar you're-" He remembered Strand and Daniel cut him off.

"There's a small town nearby, we could ask them to allow us to stay a night if they do not recognize me." Nick heard the slur in the older man's voice clearly, his jaw was skewed to the side, a big mess of crusty brown and red plastered his mouth and neck.

"My family-" Nick started again.

"We could make it there before nightfall." Daniel's voice was stern, and Nick got the message. He sat in silence as Daniel hurriedly looked for the keys, cursing under his breath. Nick watched the fractures steadily grow on the asphalt.

"You should have left me." Nick rested his head on the window. Daniel ignored him and started up the truck, having found the keys. "My family's dead."

"Well, then we're in the same boat."

Nick glanced at Daniel sourly at his choice of words. Daniel sped out the dam's lot and onto the road. Nick looked away from the building and watched the flooding river, the debris and bodies being carried downstream. The sun was sitting steadily above the horizon, making the rapid water glow orange. Nick looked away from the water to Daniel, taking time to actually study the man's face.

His jaw was swollen; twisted to the side, Nick barely noted under all the mess. Dry, caked blood smeared down his neck and shirt, and his face was stained in the colour. Nick felt numb as he looked down at his own arm, Daniel's blood marking his own shirt from where the man had grabbed him.

"We need to find a place to clean that wound." Nick spoke up after a few mile's silence. Daniel merely made a noise of recognition. The younger man sighed, shifting in his seat. "We should search the river once the rapids calm."

Daniel sighed in response to Nick's soft tone, "Nick, you won't like what we find. If we find anything."

"It's better than finding nothing." Nick wasn't sure if he could go on knowing he'd never found their bodies. Alive or reanimated. He needed the closure, the reassurance. The older man kept the silence and thought. After they passed the mountain range, Daniel spoke up.

"Once the rapids calm."

Nick nodded and eyed Daniel carefully.

"Once the rapids calm." He confirmed back.

* * *

They reached the outside of the colony as nightfall began, just as Daniel predicted. The older man drove the truck steadily through the entrance. A tall man walked over to the window as Daniel slowed to a stop. He tapped on the window and Daniel cranked it down.

"¿Quién eres tú?" He prodded, glancing at Daniel's wound.

"Sobrevivientes que buscan un lugar para dormir." Daniel responded. Nick picked up a few words and watched the two other men. Another truck passed them into the small compound with a young boy sitting in the back with buckets of water around him, effectively distracting Nick from the conversation.

"¿De donde eres?" Nick's attention was moved back to the interrogation.

"La tierra de los residuos. ¿Tienes un doctor?" Daniel replied cryptically. Nick noted a shift in the guard's face. The man nodded and motioned for them to move forward inside. Daniel slowly pulled in, parking the truck nearby the one carrying the water. Nick hopped out the passenger side and quickly moved over to help Daniel. The older man hadn't said anything, but Nick could tell he was in pain still from his wound. Nick mentally cursed himself for not offering to drive.

"Doctor?" He pulled Daniel's arm over his shoulders to support the man, his strength obviously faltering. The young boy from the water truck jumped over the back and hurried over.

"Your father needs a doctor?" The boy was no older than thirteen. Horribly messy blonde hair and mud scuffs on his face.

"Ah, yes. He's not my father, but yes, he needs help." Nick shifted Daniel's weight and the boy nodded.

"We have a medic over in this building, follow me." The teenager led Nick to a makeshift addition to the side of a wooden building. He suddenly was reminded of La Colonia, and with a pang, he lifted Daniel up the steps into the building.

"Put him on a bed, I'll get Meister." The boy ran off and Nick helped Daniel get himself into the bed. The older man groaned softly and looked around the room, exhausted. Nick assumed that Daniel had been holding in his pain in the drive, and now that they had reached a secure place he allowed himself to succumb. Nick turned at the sound of a door opening. Out of the wooden attached building, a small man walked out with the boy beside him. He had neat black hair, the sweat from the sun having made it plaster oddly to his head. His short black glasses were sliding off his face, and he pushed them up before addressing Nick and Daniel.

"Hello! I'm Matthias Hofmeister, most people call me Meister." He walked to the bedside of Daniel and knelt down to get a closer look at his jaw. "Is that a..?"

"A bite? No." Nick put his hands on his hips.

"What happened?" Meister looked up at Nick with blue eyes. Very akin to another blue eyed man. Nick twitched.

"Gunshot."

"Gunshot." Meister repeated under his breath,the wonder not lost in his eyes as he returned his gaze to the wound. "How long ago were you shot? The wound has obviously had time to clot."

"Earlier this morning." Nick responded before Daniel could. He didn't want the man to hurt his jaw more by speaking. Meister cocked a brow.

"He made it all day with a wound this intense?" He asked in disblief.

"He's a tough man." Nick shrugged whimsically. Daniel snorted.

"I can tell." Meister hummed, "There's nothing more I can do other than clean it and give you painkillers. I would sew it up, but there's nothing I can sew with, but the wound has clotted enough so as long as you dont bash it, it shouldn't reopen. It won't heal completely unless I sew it though." He stood and huffed.

The young boy piped up from the back of the room, "Xavier and I passed a fabric shop on our way into Klein."

Meister turned back to him, "Was it raided?" The boy shook his head.

"The doors still had the chains around them. Xavier wanted to tell Kellin before we did anything, but I don't think he'd mind me telling you first."

"I could go out tonight and scavenge there. I've seen Klein on road signs, I think I could find it easily." Nick pitched in. Meister looked over at him.

"It's dark, it's unsafe. Wait until morning if you do, but thank you for offering."

Nick huffed, "Best time to go, no risk of other raiders."

Meister shook his head, "Too much risk. You'll need the daylight. Lars can take you to Kellin, he plans all our expeditions outside the community." Lars (Nick figured this was the name of the boy) jumped up.

"Yeah!" Lars hurried over to Nick. "Should we go now?"

Nick looked over at Daniel, and the older man nodded. Nick nodded in return to the small blonde. Meister clapped his hands and gathered the rubbing alcohol and a bag of pills, "Then it's settled I guess! In the morning you'll scavenge the shop."

"If Kellin lets him go." Lars huffed at the doctor. Meister rolled his eyes. Lars led Nick out the building and across the road to where the trucks were parked. A man with curly black hair was handing the buckets of water from the truck to an asian man on the ground. The asian took the bucket and walked inside the door of the large hall they were parked in front of. The man in the back of the truck noticed the two heading over.

"Lars! Who's this?" He glanced over at Nick.

"This is…!" He trailed off.

"Nick."

"Nick! Him and his friend just arrived in town." Lars stated proudly. The man chuckled good heartedly and smiled.

"Well hello Nick, I'm Xavier. The cranky asian is Kellin." Xavier motioned his head back towards the door as the man in question walked out, grumbling under his breath. Kellin looked up and noticed Nick, squinting.

"You are…?"

"Kellin, this is Nick. His friend and him are new to town." Xavier chirped at him.

Nick nodded, "My friend, Daniel, was shot in the face. I came to ask if you would let me scavenge with you tomorrow for thread to sew him up." The air had grown chilly with the disappearance of the sun. Kellin huffed.

"Why should I trust you?"

"Kellin!" Xavier hit the back of his head from his position on the truck.

"No no it's fine. I'd ask the same." Nick looked between them, "I want to help this place as much as I can while Daniel and I stay here. Feels wrong to ask for help and not return anything."

Kellin nodded approvingly, "Alright. It's just a simple scavenge. I don't need to swear my life to you or anything." Kellin took another water bucket from Xavier and walked inside.

"What crawled up his ass and died?" Nick asked, bewildered.

"Dignity." Xavier watched him go while Lars giggled.

* * *

Dinner could have been less awkward.

The town consisted of almost thirty residents, all ranging in age. Nick learned that Xavier and Kellin had traveled from Texas together, meeting Lars and Meister on their way. Kellin was a Korean student and had been studying in Texas where he met Xavier when the apocalypse had just begun. Xavier had told Nick that Lars' parents never came home after a trip, and they had found the boy pathetically attempting to defend his home from the two of them.

Meister was a mystery to Nick, and to his new friends it seemed. Xavier had said they found him by the river when crossing the border in Texas, and knew nothing of him other than that he was German and had medical training.

Nick bit into his chicken and glanced around the candle lit table. Across from him was Kellin and Xavier, and Lars was sitting beside him. On his other side, a petite mexican lady named Maria ate quietly.

 _Troy would have a panic attack in this town._

Nick instantly regretted the thought as it entered his head. He reminded himself that Troy would never meet his new friends, and there would be no xenophobic episodes from his late friend. He finished his half of a chicken breast and a scoop of mashed potatoes in silence.

"So Lars! How did your first scavenge go?" A teenager by the name of Anthony asked. The table quieted and turned to the small blonde. Lars beamed proudly.

"I killed my first dead!"

"You cried in the car ride home for an hour." Kellin chewed his chicken, deadpan expression. Someone nearby chuckled and Lars huffed.

"I found the bulk package of instant mashed potatoes y'all are all eating, so." Lars glared at whoever had laughed.

"It's alright, it's unsettling to kill one for the first few times." Xavier reassured him. Nick agreed silently and moved away from the table.

"Where're you going?" Kellin gave Nick a questioning look.

"I'm going to take some of Lars' potatoes to Daniel." It would be the only thing from the meal the man could eat without risk of harming his jaw. Meister nodded at Nick.

"Be careful he doesn't open his wound, and clean the area after he eats. We don't want an infection." Meister continued eating his chicken.

Nick walked out the hall, across the road was the Medic bay. He carried a paper plate with potatoes and a spork stabbed into it. Daniel was resting in his bed when Nick sat in the chair beside him. The older man opened an eye at the smell of food.

"I figured you'd be hungry since Meister wouldn't let you out." He held out the spork impaled potatoes to Daniel. He took it graciously. "Kellin, the scavenger leader, is going to lead a patrol tomorrow to get supplies. I'm joining him to get Meister sewing materials." Daniel nodded and carefully ate his potatoes.

"Where is your friend?" Daniel asked after a while of silence.

"You shouldn't be talking, your jaw-"

"The boy, the one who didn't kill Ofelia, you say. Where is he?" Daniel's eyes cut through him in the darkness.

Nick knew there was no avoiding his question, "My mom killed him." he sighed. Daniel closed his eyes and sat back, setting the plate to the side.

"All things come full circle. You cannot escape the circle."

Nick excused himself and left the medical bay. He stalked off into the darkness, walking down the main road in town.

Sure, Daniel was right. Everything does come full circle. Troy deserved his death, he killed too many innocents to be excused, Nick knew this. Troy had been a racist, angry, sociopathic murderer, but something about his death sat sickly in Nick. In the Bazaar, Nick had seen a different side to the Otto. The night they got high, in the herd, the morning he warned him of the proctors. Nick hadn't wanted to go to the dam, he knew his family could hold off the proctors, but Troy urged him. It was Troy who wanted to save his family, and it was his family who killed him.

Nick passed a couple of dark shops that had been converted into living quarters. Daniel had promised him that they would search the waters once the rapids calmed. They should be calm by the next morning, Nick thought. By the time Nick went out with the patrol to scavenge, the water should be flowing steadily, enough so he could check the banks. Daniel was injured and Nick realized he could not wait for him to recover to search from the bodies.

Footsteps behind Nick prompted him out of his thoughts. Lars appeared at his side.

"Hey Nick, you tired?"

"Yeah, long day." Nick kicked a rock and Lars watched it skip.

"Well, Meister wanted me to tell you that we have some open places if you wanted to stay here. Even just temporarily! A lot of the shops on this street are houses now, as I'm sure you've seen. You could find an empty shop to fix up and stay in, Daniel too if he wanted." Lars carried on.

Nick smiled, "Yeah Lars, I think I'll stay for a little while. What shop do you recommend for me?"

Lars lit up.

Nick could wait until the rapids calmed.

* * *

Hello! I haven't written a fanfiction in years, but Trick is calling me so i'm back. All the Spanish in this is from google translate, i'm sorry, I only speak English and German.

1- Who are you?

2- Survivors looking for a place to sleep.

3- Where are you from?

4- The wasteland. Do you have a doctor?

Also, if you miss Troy Otto a whole lotto, sign this! p/ amc-entertainment-bring-back-troy-otto


	2. Chapter 2

Nick had only stayed up for a few more hours that night. He picked out a storefront further in the small town. It was further back from the main street, but close enough if he was needed. He'd spent a short time rearranging the few furniture found inside before crashing out on a blanket on the floor. In the morning he was woken by Xavier.

"Hey, patrol is waking now." Xavier nudged him awake.

Nick sat up dopily and rubbed his eyes, "M'kay, I'll be right through in a minute."

Xavier left the small store and Nick stretched out, his back popping. He made a mental note to find a mattress in the town somewhere when he came back from patrol.

He found the rest of the patrol group meeting by two trucks outside the town hall where they'd eaten the night before. Kellin stood in the truck bed as someone Nick didn't recognize handed him supplies. Xavier stood off to the side and Nick walked over to him.

"You're on the patrol?" Nick questioned and Xavier shook his head.

"Kellin accidentally woke me, I figured I'd help out for y'all leaving."

Nick nodded, "Xavier, is there any mattress or something around I could use?" Xavier shook his head after a moment.

"No, Meister is using piles of blankets and hay in his ward, only a few of us actually have real beds." Xavier chuckled.

Nick nodded softly in understanding and looked back over at the two filling the truck, "Who's that? With the...hair?"

"The mullet you mean?" Xavier laughed, "That's Javier, he was a resident in the town before." Nick nodded in understanding.

"He on the patrol?"

Xavier hummed a yes. Kellin jumped off the truck and moved to the driver's side, waving a hand at Nick. Xavier clapped Nick on the back. "There's your cue!" Nick chuckled and walked off to them.

Javier handed Nick a small backpack and jumped into the bed, "You up front kid."

Kellin watched Nick climb into the passenger seat, "So you're after medical supplied for the Meister?" Nick nodded.

"For my friend."

Kellin nodded lazily and started the vehicle. Nick squinted unsurely at the Korean. Javier opened the rear window and shoved his head in, "Vamonos ladies."

Kellin snorted and began to drive out the community. Xavier held the gate back for the truck to pass, waving enthusiastically at them. Nick turned down to his pack and rummaged through it. A flashlight, long knife, wire, smaller knife, and pliers. He looked up and around at the others. Javier held a mean looking gun, reminding Nick again of Troy. Moving to Kellin, the boy noticed only a knife and a pistol in the console.

"Hey, how come I'm the only one left out of the gun party?" Nick asked, lacing his words in sass. Kellin glanced at him, the side eye leaving a weird feeling in Nick.

"You haven't proven yourself trustworthy yet." Kellin answered simply.

"Yet you give me a what-" Nick looked back in his back "A mini fucking sword?"

"It's called a barong machete, dipshit."

"It's literally a mini sword." Nick deadpanned. Kellin didn't respond.

Nick sat back in his seat, staring at the black barong. "I could still kill you with the sword offspring."

" _Barong_." The Korean corrected, "And I'm pretty sure I could shoot you before you could get anywhere."

Nick noted how tired the other man sounded. "What's this other knife," He pulled it out by its wooden handle. Javier appeared in the small window, "That's a Troy Coyote blade."

"Of course."

 _Thanks universe._

Javier huffed at him, "It's one of my favourites, be nice to her." Nick looked back at the older man.

"Then why'd ya, you know, give me her?"

"Wanted to see how you'd handle a blade." Javier shrugged, Nick barely hearing him over the wind. "See if you're a good knives man."

"Well I'm not, so take your Troy back before you lose it." Nick held the handle to the Hispanic. Javier paused before turning away.

"I gave you the blade to use on the run. So use it. If He decides today is the day I lose Troy, then I accept it." Javier moved away from the window. Nick just continued to stare at the blank space where he once was.

Kellin snapped him out of it, "Hey turn around, if I crash you're dead."

Nick moved slowly back to site right. "What would you crash into, a cactus?" He snarked. Kellin's short laugh surprised him.

"Mm yeah."

Nick watched him for a short second before turning back to the Coyote knife. He spun it in his hands and examined the handle.

"Javier likes you. Don't make him not like you, keep that knife safe." Kellin spoke without looking away from the wheel. Nick looked up and out the window, staring at the dirt road.

"Does the universe ever like, do something, and you're just baffled?"

Kellin hummed in response, "You bet."

* * *

They arrived at Klein a short hour after they left the community. Kellin moved slowly through the much larger town, guiding the three men down deserted roads. glanced around at the surroundings. Paper and boxes were strewn elsewhere, various trash and objects lined the main street. There had probably been a riot, he ducted as he saw the faded blood puddles. Puddles where bodies should have laid.

"The sewing shop Lars talked about is up one of these roads, I don't know if there's any other people around but be cautious. The flooding of the river has brought out some real unsavoury types." Kellin warned as he pulled down a small alleyway.

"Where are the dead? The wasted?" Nick asked. Kellin shrugged.

"Was like this when we first started scavenging here. Of course there's a few here and there but.." He trailed off.

Nick understood and pulled the backpack on his back, mini sword in one hand and Troy in his belt. Kellin parked the truck beside a corner shop.

"If Javier and I pop in here to rummage, would you be fine by yourself? The shop is right across there, and I don't imagine there would be a lot of dead in an old lady shop." Kellin asked. Nick felt a slight alarm at splitting up, but didn't speak up. He had run countless missions by himself, a sewing shop was nothing. Nick nodded.

Kellin vacated the truck and Nick and Javier followed soon after. Javier handed Nick a large pair of bolt cutters from the back of the truck. Nick headed across the road to the fabric shop as Kellin prepared the bed of the truck for any supplies. He cut the large chains wrapped around the handles, noting the slight rust.

 _They've been here since the start._

Nick pulled the chains out the handle and stopped himself from opening the door, instead opting to knock loudly on the murky glass door. With a bang, a face slammed itself parallel to Nick's, mouth agape and snarling. Behind it, two more joined. An old lady, a young woman, and a man so disfigured Nick wasn't even sure it was a man. Kellin glanced up, "Javier!" The two ran over to the shop entrance to help with the clearing.

Nick held the doors shut, the dead becoming insistent at more prey.

"One for each!" Javier spoke.

Nick nodded and opened the door, using it to conceal himself as the three wasted headed for his patrol mates. Once passed, Nick let go of the door and grabbed the young female walker, instantly killing it with a sharp blow of the mini sword. Kellin swiftly made waste of the wasted old Lady. The woman's body toppled into the disfigured man and subsequently knocked Javier over, him losing his weapon. Javier held up the walked with his hands on its head, avoiding its mouth. The dead man's skin began peeling back horribly, the head snapping closer to Javier. Nick's barong made its way into the back of the skull of the wasted, Javier staring into its dead eyes panting. Kellin hurried over and pulled off the cadaver.

"Javier are you alright?"

Javier looked past him and at Nick, a slight nod of gratitude. Nick nodded back and wistfully spun around, picking up his fallen backpack and walking into the shop in a daze. He never liked killing, alive or wasted.

Nick worked his way around the clean shop. Fabric wheels stretching to the ceiling, materials and tools strewn around untouched. He first gathered the scissors, tossing them into his backpack. A few exacto knives lay around as well and he added them to his collection. He walked around as if he were window shopping, poking his head into the aisle before swimming his way down it.

He reached the thread section and took his time scanning it. He finally picked up a thin black thread and white thread, comparing them. Out of habit, he took the time to scan the prices before blinking and tossing them both into his pack. And a few more just in case.

Somehow he found his way into the fabric section, touching and feeling all the materials. He stopped at a nice, soft material and pulled it out to feel it more. Awkwardly, he pulled the full rod out the stand and shoved it halfway into his bag. He sighed at the half that stuck out and walked over to the resisters and took a large store bag out, ignoring the fairly large pile of old blood behind the counter.

He successfully shoved the fabric into this bag, and he hummed contently. Nick made his way to the stuffing section and grabbed as many bags of filling as he could, carrying them group by group out the truck. He stuffed the bags beside the goods Kellin and Javier collected. Kellin gave him an odd look but didn't ask anything.

* * *

They finished a short while later. Nick had gathered a few spools of fabric he deemed worthy and many, many bags of stuffing. Kellin decided to leave the situation alone.

"How much stuff did you find in the corner shop?" Nick prodded as they tied down the goods.

"Some gauze, canned ingredients, a rotten cabbage. Not much. I think we might have to find a new town for our raids, that shop was one of the last places we hadn't checked out." Kellin responded. Nick noticed how the two of them had begun talking easier since the patrol. Maybe Kellin was finally accepting him.

"Have you tried moving further inland? Away from the river I mean." Nick asked. Javier looked up. "I mean like, if people are coming to the river for water, then all the towns near the river will be occupied or ransacked. If we scavenged farther out…"

Kellin nodded, "Not a bad suggestion, we might go over that with Meister later." He closed the bed door. Suddenly there was an engine roar a few streets over. Kellin ducked and ran into the driver's seat, Nick following instinctively. Javier settled himself in the bed again.

Kellin quickly started the truck and tore off in a sharp U-turn away from the sound. Nick hung his head out the window as the muzzle of another car showed itself down another alleyway. He quickly pulled his head in as a bullet ricketshayed off the truck bed. Kellin slammed his foot on the gas and took off through the town, sharp turns and circling to lose the other car. Nick held tightly onto the O-shit handle, barely comprehending what was happening. Once they left Klein, Kellin shouted, "Javier! Are they following?"

Javier sat up from where he'd been laying, looking to Klein. "No sir! Don't slow anyways!" Kellin heeded and continued his high speed getaway to the highway. Nick eventually let go of his handle, taking a deep breath, his eyes wide.

"What the fuck was that?!"

"Others, probably more raiders who moved in for the water. Dammit! They've never had guns before." Kellin gritted his teeth.

"The dam, before it fell there was a group that came who had guns. Seized the dam with them." Nick commented absentmindedly, staring back out the rear window. The car jerked slightly and Kellin shot Nick a bewildered look.

"Dam?! You were there? You son of a-" Kellin roared. Nick went cold.

"No no! I wasn't with the dam group!"

"Then the ones with the guns?!"

"No! They attacked us while we were at the dam!" Nick tried to clarify. "We tried to warn the dam about the group with guns, the Proctors they call themselves, but we were too late and got caught up in the crossfire!"

"We? You and Daniel?" Kellin prodded, his rage plateauing.

"Yes-! No! Wait no, Daniel was already at the dam. He-"

Kellin cut him off, slowing the truck from its sonic speed, "What happened at the dam?"

Nick sighed softly, "It's a long story."

"Talk.

Javier shoved his face in the window again.

* * *

Chapter two is up! I have a vague idea of where to take this, and I hope i can execute it well 3


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